‘Eaters pull out victory

Steve Virgen

He’s no Jerry Green, but Jeff Gloger should do just fine ... and

so should Mike Hood, and Mike Efevberha. The UC Irvine men’s

basketball team depended on its guards to earn its first victory of

the season and the Anteaters’ first victory at Pepperdine Saturday,

when UCI won, 74-69. UCI had lost five in a row at Pepperdine until

Saturday night.

Gloger, a redshirt freshman who started his first game of the

season, came on strong in crunch time. He finished with 11 points,

while Hood, the starting senior guard, added a team-high 17 points,

and Efevberha, the Anteaters’ lone true freshman, came off the bench

and scored 12 points.

“(Pepperdine) can create pressure on defense,” UCI Coach Pat

Douglass said.

“But I thought our freshmen handled the ball very well. They gave

us a great flow of offense in the game.”

With 1:12 remaining and UCI leading, 68-66, Gloger grabbed a

defensive rebound. Then, 18 seconds later he drove to the basket for

a layup, forcing Pepperdine into a timeout and UCI teammates into a

frenzy.

UCI junior forward Jordan Harris and reserve junior forward Matt

Okoro teamed up for a defensive stop, as they forced Jimmy Miggins

into a missed shot. Harris was fouled with 30 seconds left, and he

made both free throws.

Pepperdine missed five straight shots afterward and Efevberha

finally grabbed a rebound and was quickly fouled with seven seconds

left.

The Waves were dealing with the loss of their starting center,

Will Kimble, who has been diagnosed with a career-threatening heart

condition. Kimble fainted during the team’s Tuesday’s practice and

later went through testing. Kimble said he would no longer play

basketball.

“Events like this have a way of putting things in a proper

perspective,” Pepperdine Coach Paul Westphal said. “Our thoughts and

our prayers are with him and his family.”

Douglass said he felt sorry for Kimble. In regard to matchups on

the court, Douglass thought loss of Kimble forced UCI’s big men to

have to “chase” Pepperdine’s small lineup. In addition, 7-foot junior

center Adam Parada got into foul trouble for the second straight

game. Parada, who scored nine points, fouled out with 5:35 left. He

picked up his fourth foul with 9:47 left, and had his third with 9:45

left in the first half.

So, UCI (1-2) had to depend on its guards. Hood answered the call,

especially in the first half. He scored 13 points, hitting three of

his six three-point shot attempts. He missed the rim on one of his

three-point shot attempts, which set off jeers of “Air ball” from the

crowd. But, Hood nailed two three-pointers toward the end of the

half, the latter coming with 25 seconds remaining that gave UCI a

33-31 lead.

The Anteaters went up 20-12 with 9:11 left in the first half. But

then they went scoreless over the next 5:26, as Pepperdine (0-2) took

advantage and went on a 10-0 run. Mike Westphal, the coach’s son,

knocked down a three-pointer to cap the run that also led UCI to call

a timeout. Efevberha broke UCI’s scoring drought with his

three-pointer with 3:44 left, giving the Aneaters a 23-22 edge.

UCI matched its biggest lead of the game with 8:25 remaining, when

Efevberha made a great entry pass into Greg Ethington, who finished

it with an uncontested layup, provding a 58-50 lead.

Later, after Parada fouled out, Pepperdine went on a 7-0 run in a

span of 1:32 to come within 60-59. The teams traded baskets down the

stretch with UCI never having more than a three-point lead.

Pepperdine’s Terrance Johnson, one of four Waves’ players in double

figures, knocked a three-pointer with 1:53 left, tying the score,

66-66.

Okoro converted on a basket inside the paint with 1:30 left and

gave UCI a 68-66 lead, and Gloger later took over.

*

ZOTS -- Kimble attended the game Saturday night to support his

Pepperdine teammates. “(The heart problem) makes all of this look

small,” Kimble said.

“I’m just glad to be alive. I’m glad I survived.” ... UCI junior

forward Stanislav Zuzak struggled. He went 0 for 5 from the field and

did not score in the game ... UCI shot 50% from the field and (9 for

9) 100% from the free-throw line.

NONCONFERNCE

UC Irvine 74, Pepperdine 69

UC Irvine - Zuzak 0, Harris 10, Parada 9, Gloger 11, Hood 17,

Efevberha 12, Ethington 6, Okoro 6, Schraeder 3, Campbell 0,

Baskauskas 0.

3-pt - Hood 3, Efevberha 2, Gloger 1, Schraeder 1.

Fouled out - Parada.

Technicals - None.

Pepperdine - Turner 6, Miggins 17, Brazzle 10, Montgomery 15,

Johnson 11, Westphal 8, Acker 2, Grubb 0.

3-pt - Montgomery 3, Johnson 2, Westphal 2.

Fouled out - none.

Tenchnicals - none.

Attendance - 1,866.